Hurricane Sandy a wake-up call to get scientists more involved in federal politics

The final days of the Presidential election were interrupted by an unexpected hurricane that devastated the East Coast. The death toll of Superstorm Sandy has reached at least 110 and the fiscal damages are in billions of dollars. Traffic jams, flooding, lack of public transportation and days without power have crippled the region and its residents. Sandy refocused climate change as a real political issue with costly implications. The role of the FEMA, the federal agency that manages disaster relief, also became a critical issue. Earth and Space Sciences Professor William Newman discusses how Sandy revealed many of the unique challenges our generation faces and how we have handled crises in the past.